From cozy dive bars to high-energy clubs and everything in between, plan your ultimate night out in Brew City.
Showy
Located on top of Hotel Metro is the craft cocktail bar Pufferfish. This downtown oasis offers a tropical tiki escape, exotic drinks and beautiful cityscape views. The bartenders at Boone & Crockett serve innovative, expertly crafted cocktails. And besides a cool, Americana-style interior, they have sweeping views of the dazzling Hoan Bridge lights.
The Aviary, nested atop the Central Standard Crafthouse & Kitchen, dazzles with panoramic city sights. Choose from a selection of zero-proof and locally distilled craft cocktails downstairs and take them to the rooftop sanctuary to enjoy.
Skyline Bar + Lounge is the city’s premier rooftop sake bar. Located at the top of No Studios, this stunning, glass-enclosed space offers unobstructed, 360-degree views. High atop the grand Pfister Hotel, Blu will make daily routines and jam-packed schedules fade away in no time. Pop a chilled bottle of champagne and revel in the relaxing atmosphere, accompanied by live music while enjoying what many visitors consider the best view of Milwaukee.
Cozy
A hidden speakeasy with an entrance in Black Cat Alley, Shanghai offers craft cocktails and a wide selection of absinthe. Inside the intimate space, you'll find exposed cream city brick, movie posters in homage to the nearby Oriental Theater, artwork in tribute to the former occupant of the Crossroads Collective space, Oriental Drugs, and expertly crafted drinks.
Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge, Milwaukee’s oldest cocktail lounge, provides an escape with exotic lighting and plush velvet walls. Cozy up in a booth while sipping a classic signature cocktail like the Pink Squirrel or Banshee.
Spooky
Resting on the ground of a former cemetery, Shaker's Cigar Bar operated as a speakeasy and brothel during Prohibition under the legendary Capone brothers' ownership, where ghosts occasionally wander by... Stop by this local haunt to catch the live music, libations, fine cigars and maybe a few unexpected guests.
Sporty
Roll into your big night out at Holler House and Koz’s Mini Bowl. Holler House is home to two of the oldest sanctioned bowling lanes in the country, while Koz’s offers duckpin bowling, played with a smaller ball and shorter pins. Break out your inner lumberjack with a little axe throwing at AXE MKE. The lively axe-throwing bar offers all the craft, domestic and specialty beers to pair with your axe-perience. If you'd prefer to catch the game on TV, Leff's Lucky Town is Wauwatosa's sports HQ. The bar and restaurant serves delicious daily specials and features a spacious outdoor patio for the warmer months.
Divey
Champion's Pub is a longtime neighborhood tavern. Play a game of shuffleboard or enjoy the beer garden. No matter how you look at it, Champion's is a fun and approachable bar for a night out. Meanwhile, Wolski’s Tavern is inconspicuously located on Milwaukee’s Lower East Side. Complete with a pool table, dart boards, free popcorn and a covered patio, the bar is best known for its “I Closed Wolski’s” bumper stickers. A badge of honor, these stickers are earned, not purchased, and require a late night at the bar.
Clubby
Follow the Honky Tonk music to Nashville North MKE on Brady Street, offering live music seven days a week. Or, if you’re in the mood to bust a move, try Brothers, RWB or Trinity Three Irish Pubs. A couple of LGBTQ+ dance clubs are La Cage or POP, true dance clubs with all the lights and great music you’d expect, and This is it! co-owned by the winner of “Ru Paul’s Drag Race” star Trixie Mattel, This is it! always offers an unforgettable night on the town.
Unique
Art Deco meets…elephants? At The Elephant Room inside the Milwaukee Athletic Club, the historic lounge space designed by famed architects Eschweiler & Eschweiler comes complete with a wonderfully unique backdrop of restored murals featuring elephants roaming the African plains. Looking for an undercover escape?
Try the late-night missions at the spy-themed SafeHouse. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to embark on a memorable espionage-laden adventure. Or check out Mosler’s Vault a modern speakeasy tucked away in a former bank vault at the North Avenue Market. Deposit yourself and your friends at for a night out that’s nothing short of priceless.
